Category: 1:72 scale
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A Different Rhythm At The Workbench

What strange creatures we are. When working for a living there were times when I could not get away from my work station fast enough at the end of the day. Now that I’m retired, I can’t wait to get to it. And there are weeks when I seem to work at it as if…
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The Gift Buffalo

And you never look a gift buffalo in the mouth… This little gem was left on the modeller’s table at the club one week along with another 1:72 model under a sign: ” Free, please take “. I didn’t feel I could make good use of the other Japanese airplane but I knew that the…
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Aim For Perfection – Strive For Excellence

Accept Good Results. If this was a social media site instead of a column I could post those memes for days along with kitten and sunset pictures. Of course I’d get trolled something fierce, but the statistics would probably improve. As it is I have adjusted my sights down to strive for excellence and accept…
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Grumman Duck – Part Three – A Riveting Build

I mentioned in the first column of this build that I was not going to notice the raised rivets of this older Airfix kit – I have to say now that I have not adhered to this blasé attitude. In truth, I do notice them. And I love them. The choice of clear silver lacquer…
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Grumman Duck – Part Two – Ungainly Is As Ungainly Does

Like most seaplanes – the Rufe, the Spitfire on floats, the Seamew – the Grumman Duck looks vaguely like a practical joke the designers played on the factory that leaked out past the drafting table, and they were too embarrased to admit it was all in fun. Yet the planes worked and were very useful…
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Grumman Duck – Part One – The Civil Mould

I have a suspicion that the Airfix Grumman Duck in 1:72 scale is an older mould – the raised rivet lines. Perhaps a Matchbox kit re-issued. I also find that as I am an older modeller – it doesn’t bother me in the slightest. That is the fine legacy of being able to build the…
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The Costs Of A Decal

Well, that can’t be very much, can it? Try making your own and see… The idea of using the inkjet printer I already own to make custom decals was very attractive. I’m a dab hand with Photoshop Elements and as long as a design is reasonably simple, I can duplicate it. Even if it is…
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North American Mustang I – Part Five – A Dappled Horse

Well, the Mustang is on charge and will be conveyed to RCAF Wet Dog in a day or so. It is as fresh as many coats of paint and varnish can make it – the decision to begin weathering the models has been postponed for a few months. The final result of this experimental build…
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North American Mustang I – Part Four – Yamaguchi And Spruance

Look ’em up. Admirals Yamaguchi and Spruance – opponents at the Battle of Midway. Both got an aircraft carrier shot out underneath them. But their subsequent actions when their carriers were unsavable is the point of difference. Yamaguchi stood on his bridge with the sinking ship and he and a number of other Japanese officers…
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North American Mustang I – Part Three – The Unholy Mess

Well, I gave it the old college try – or in this case the old Dental School try. I used red baseplate wax to mask off the Mustang I. It was old home week for a while there as I set up the bunsen burner and got the wax warmed up. If I was doing…
